Plastic fishing hooks are described in the patent literature (see U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,833,816, 5,024,020, and 5,165,197) and available commercially from the Sitton Super Setter Company (Beaumont, Tex.). Such hooks are characterized by a number of significant advantages over conventional steel hooks. Their shock-absorbing action increases their penetrating power by maintaining the axis of penetration of the point substantially parallel to the line of action of the hook. Further, they do not rust, are inexpensive to manufacture, and, in many cases, release from a hooked snag before the line to which they are attached breaks. However, concerns as to their ability to penetrate the mouth of a fish have hampered their acceptance by both the commercial and sport fishing industry.
In actuality, the unique ability of the plastic hook described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,833,816 to maintain the axis of penetration substantially parallel to the direction in which the hook is pulled by the line to which the hook is attached provides “setting power,” e.g., penetration ability, which is more than adequate for many species of commercially important sport and game fish. The ability of that hook to flex when hit by a fish and then effectively straighten out to drive the point through the fish's mouth enables that hook to be used as molded. In other words, no finishing operation is needed after molding to increase the sharpness of the point, an advantage which helps keep the cost of manufacture low and enables the use of relatively inexpensive plastics. The relatively “soft” plastics which are used for molding such hooks have the advantage of being capable of being easily sharpened after use to a point with a conventional fingernail file or emery board when it is felt that the hook is not sharp enough.
Nevertheless, in those instances in which the hook is being used repeatedly and in large numbers, for instance, by commercial “long line” fisherman, such that sharpening is impractical because of the frequency of sharpening and the number of hooks being utilized, or when the target fish is characterized by a particularly bony mouth, and also for those fish with “teeth,” it would be advantageous for the hooks described in those prior patents to have better penetration capability. It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a fish hook comprised of two or more materials having improved penetration capability. It is also an object of the present invention to provide a fish hook with improved penetration capability which can be manufactured from inexpensive materials and which does not require finishing and/or sharpening after manufacture.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a fish hook having improved strength. Another object of the present invention is to provide a fish hook having a cavity formed therein for receiving a fish attractant such as a light, noisemaker or source of smell. Other objects, and the advantages which characterize the plastic fish hook of the present invention, will be made clear by the following description of several embodiments thereof.